Staff
Staff has the often-thankless task of running the game. We do our best, and generally we're very happy to offer whatever assistance we are able whenever we can. While we strive to do our best to make the game an enjoyable experience for everyone, please bear in mind that we are volunteers who have other commitments and demands upon our time. We pledge to do our best to deal politely and fairly with the playerbase, especially if we receive such treatment in return. Basically, we're all here to have fun, so let's try to cooperate, get along, and all that good stuff. Like the man said: "Make it so!" Contacting Staff It is only proper to contact a staff member only through their staff alt. Also, please never bother a staff member who is listed as off-duty--you can see it on '+who' or '+staff'. If you do not see a staff member on +staff, they are to be treated as if they are not connected. Whether or not you know the staff member's alts, never page anyone's player alt with a staff question or problem. Contacting the staffer off-game via messaging programs or on other MUs is unacceptable unless the staff member has explicitly stated otherwise. Staff members should only be contacted via email at the address listed in their +finger info or at the general admin address, below. Staff members have no staff authority via their player character alts. So, you should treat staff members connected to player alts like any player. If a staffer needs to come into a situation as an admin, it must be done via an actual staff character. When they are connected as players, staff members have the same right to express opinions as anyone else. They must also abide by the rules of conduct. Staffers with player alts have all the same rights and responsibilities as any other player when connected to those alts. * Admin Email: admin@mythara.com Staff Mediation and Arbitration Apart from simply making and enforcing the game's rules, processing character applications, and so forth, staff is here to help players work together to have a more successful collaborative experience. Two specific ways that staff is able to do this are arbitration and mediation. Mediation is when two people are having an issue with one another and need a third party to help a conversation along. This might be confusion over events from role-play or difficulties over a plot, or it might concern OOC issues, such as miscommunications about a plot or altercations in the player lounge. The process of mediation is optional--staff will seldom if ever require it--but is designed to facilitate dialogue when a situation has become tense or difficult. The key point, here, is that staff will attempt to help players resolve a situation rather than making a decision that solves the situation with a specific staff ruling. Staff generally prefers that you seek mediation before a situation reaches the point of filing complaints or ignoring/gagging each other. As one staffer put it, we prefer to work problems out this way, especially if it is one that "in Real Life, you could reasonably talk out over a cup of coffee." However, if mediation fails, we may have to move on to an arbitration. Arbitration is when staff must make a judgment concerning a disagreement. In cases where an OOC conflict that has escalated beyond the point of mediation, staff will invite both sides to present their side of the argument, but in an arbitration staff will issue a specific judgment to resolve the problem. This may not always please everyone, and at times staff may declare a compromise or otherwise not simply "choose a side," and we may well do so. In the end, staff would rather take a bit of heat for taking the middle ground than see players continue to be at odds with one another. As always, please feel free to contact staff or submit a +request if you have questions or if you would like to arrange for mediation or arbitration.